21 August 2007
Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute
NASA recently published an exquisite image of Saturn's magnificent rings, acquired by the Saturn-bound Cassini spacecraft. Prometheus, Saturn's small, intriguing moon, is visible as a bright dot skimming the narrow F ring.
Prometheus (102 km across) is a "shepherd" moon whose gravitational influence perturbs the particles of the F ring. In this breathtaking view, Prometheus glides from left to right. The bright core of the F ring is visible near the ring's outer edge at right.
The spacecraft was looking toward the illuminated side of the rings from about 2° below the ringplane. The image was taken in visible light with Cassini's wide-angle camera on 28 June 2007. Cassini was approximately 279,000 km from Saturn.
Further Reading
Cassini-Huygens Mission
http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.cfm
Aymen Mohamed Ibrahem
Senior Astronomy Specialist